Sunday, November 2, 2014

Disconnecting Myself-Julia Zureikat


When we were given this assignment, I knew there was absolutely no way I could completely disconnect myself. I am currently emailing recruiters about interviews, receiving updates on my upcoming midterm, and helping my brother with college applications. I also knew I would not be able to give up texting or calling because I went home this past weekend and needed to update my parents along the way. In addition, I rely on my iphone’s GPS to direct me home. Due to all of these factors, I knew there were some things I simply did not have the option of giving up. Therefore, I decided I would deprive myself of the things that were not crucial to my weekend. These things include my Instagram, Facebook, and Snapchat account. I’m embarrassed to say it ended up being harder than I thought. The weirdest thing was witnessing the body language habits I have acquired through the constant access of social media and my phone. For example, without even receiving a text or phone call, I would reach for my phone when I was bored. It was like a nervous twitch. This assignment was especially hard since I was home. None of my friends were in town and I desperately wanted to go on Instagram to see what everyone was for Halloween. I also wanted to go on Snapchat to watch snap stories of my friends who were out since I was bored on my couch. I felt twitchy and anxious just sitting with my phone but not being able to check these media apps. I’m sad to say I was only able to give it all up for one full day. This was not a conscious decision, but rather out of my subconscious habit. I went to dinner with my family and ordered a dessert that my best friend and I always get with each other. I obliviously opened up my snapchat and sent it to her. It was only then that I realized I had broken the rules. Once I threw in the towel, I was ravenous. I remained glued to my phone and began to check all of my social media like a mad woman. It was embarrassing. Social media is so prevalent in my daily life that I felt naked without it. I was constantly bored and felt that I had way too much free time. This assignment truly opened my eyes to how often I am on my phone. I never want to have to do that again. I felt like I dropped out off the face of the earth because I was both digitally and physically isolated from my life in Madison.

2 comments:

Unknown said...

I feel the exact same way Julia. I'm embarrassed to say I'm addicted to my phone. People always comment how I'm "always" on it, and it's probably true. Like you said it's a subconscious feeling. I also snap pictures of my favorite similar foods to my best friend and I subconsciously did that this weekend as well. It's become sort of innate to us and without it we feel naked and incomplete.

matthew reich said...

Technology is too addicting! You're not alone. From a social media point of view, staying away from technology isn't too hard. However, it's nearly impossible to disconnect yourself from others for a full weekend. Like you said, technology is the most important means to our communication and without it we would miss a lot of important messages.